Western Digital will not drop merger objections over Toshiba investment: CEO

FILE PHOTO : A logo of Toshiba is seen on a printed circuit board in this photo illustration taken in Tokyo
Thomson Reuters
By Stephen Nellis

(Reuters) - Western Digital Corp on Thursday refused demands from Toshiba Corp that it drop a set of legal rights it believes would allow the company to block Toshiba's $18 billion sale to SK Hynix as part of negotiations over a joint chip investment between Toshiba and Western Digital.

Western Digital Chief Executive Officer Steve Milligan made the comments on an investor call for the company's fiscal first quarter, where the firm posted a net income of $681 million, or $2.23 per share, in the first quarter ended Sept. 29, compared with a net loss of $366 million, or $1.28 per share, a year earlier. Shares were up 1.68 percent to $91 after hours.